Phoenix, Arizona, is this weekend’s destination for the Iowa State softball team as it will play in the Lopes Up Classic.

In the Lopes Up Classic, the Cyclones will play five games: two against the Northern Colorado, one against Utah, one against Grand Canyon and one against South Dakota.

Iowa State has struggled offensively this season, but they showed some progress in last week’s Holy City Showdown.

“Last weekend we tried to do something different, whether that’s laying down a bunt and we tried to do anything that started a rally,” said senior first baseman Sally Woolpert. “It’s something that we need to continue to do.”

The Cyclones begin the Lopes Up Classic with a game against Northern Colorado at 10 a.m. Friday, followed by a game against Utah at 12:30 p.m.

Northern Colorado has had a rocky start to the season and have a record of 3-11, but the Bears have won their last two games.

Since Iowa State coach Jamie Pinkerton used to coach at Montana in the Big Sky conference, the Cyclones may have some insider knowledge on the Bears, who are also part of the Big Sky.

“Northern Colorado is a good offensive team, and that means we’ve got continue to pitch well,” Pinkerton said.

Iowa State and Northern Colorado last played in 2014, when the Cyclones came away with a 9-1 victory.

Utah started the season well with a record of 4-1 and received votes to be ranked. However, since then, the Utes have lost six out of their last seven games with their lone win coming against Hofstra.

Even though the Utes are 1-6 in since their opening weekend, it’s worth noting four of those losses came against teams that are or were ranked in the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll.

The Cyclones and Utes have one common opponent this season, the Colorado State Rams. Utah lost to the Rams 6-1, but the Cyclones beat the Rams 6-5.

On Saturday the Cyclones will have a rematch against the Rams at 3 p.m. followed by a matchup against Grand Canyon.

Grand Canyon had a shaky start to the season as it went 4-6 in its first 10 games. However, the Antelopes have won three of their last four games.

The Antelopes have been competitive in almost all of their games as six of their seven losses have come by fewer than four runs. The only game they lost by one run came to the fourth-ranked Oklahoma Sooners by six runs.

On Sunday, the Cyclones will finish the Lopes Up Classic with a matchup against South Dakota at 11 a.m.

This matchup will be the first of two meetings between South Dakota and Iowa State, as the Coyotes will travel to Ames to face the Cyclones on April 2.

The Cyclones and Coyotes are very familiar with one another as they have played each other seven times in the past six seasons. Iowa State has a 6-1 record in those games.

The Coyotes are off to a hot start with an 11-4 record so far this season. They average 6.5 runs a game.

Iowa State is 6-6 on the season and are trying to build more momentum as the season goes on. Pinkerton’s message to the team this week is simple, said senior pitcher Savannah Sanders.

“Just go out, play hard and compete every pitch,” Sanders said.